One good thing about the cooler weather is that it forces me to work. We don’t have any snow yet to play in. Summer is past. So, rather than hike up a mountain or float down the Colorado River, I am pushed indoors towards my kitchen.
Staring out my kitchen window on a blustery day, I want to bake and feel warmth. I want to create. I suppose the upcoming holidays also inspire that side of me. It’s easy to associate this time of year most with baking.
I was brainstorming ideas for some coffee shop pastries the other morning, and a variation of these bars popped into mind. I’d love to do a larger-sized, thicker version of these for Yeti’s Grind at some point. But for now, at my home, these are perfect.
The crust and filling are based off of two recipes from Nick Malgieri’s book, The Modern Baker. The buttery, crumbly crust is baked by itself for about 15 minutes until it just begins to color along the edges. This ensures a pumpkin bar with a little more texture than just ‘soft’.
Next, I whisked together a pumpkin custard- pumpkin puree, eggs, spices, sugar, and a little milk -and poured it on top of the crust. The crumble topping was made using Turbinado sugar (also known as raw sugar) and sprinkled over the custard. The coarse sugar never quite melts down, so you are left with a crunchy top layer.
They are, in my opinion, quite delicious. Pumpkin celebrated.
Looking for other delicious forms of pumpkin and squash? Check out my posts on Pumpkin Crumble Muffins and Vanilla-Scented Butternut Squash Bread.
How to make this high altitude adjusted recipe:
Pumpkin Crumb Bars
- Crust:
- 2 sticks (8 oz) unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- Filling:
- 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
- 3 eggs
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¾ cup whole milk
- Topping:
- 2 sticks (8 oz) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup Turbinado sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- For the crust: Preheat your oven to 350 F.
- Line a 9 x 13" baking pan with foil and lightly butter it.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the salt, vanilla, and flour; mix until crumbly.
- Press into the bottom of the prepared pan and bake for 15 minutes or just until the edges start to color lightly.
- Meanwhile, prepare the filling and topping.
- For the fililng: whisk together the pumpkin, eggs, sugar, vanilla, spices, and milk.
- For the topping: combine the butter, Turbinado sugar, flour, and maple syrup in the bowl of an electric mixer.
- Using the paddle attachment, combine the ingredients until they come together and create 'crumbs'.
- When the crust is finished baking, pour the pumpkin filling over the hot crust. Sprinkle the topping on top of the pumpkin filling.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until the filling is set and the topping is a light golden brown.
Note: This recipe was created for high altitude baking. To make at sea level, the baking times may vary.
